MOVING ON from their loss against De La Salle University, the Ateneo Lady Eagles swept the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Lady Spikers, 3-0, last Sunday, February 17 in The Arena in San Juan.

The win secured Ateneo the second seed in the standings and a twice-to-beat advantage. It also forces a playoff between National University and UST for a spot in the final four.

The Lady Eagles started the first set strong with a quick 5-0 lead care of Alyssa Valdez and Marge Tejada, which they built to an 11-5 lead care of Gretchen Ho and UST’s unforced errors and violations. However, UST’s Judy Caballejo remained aggressive throughout the set as they snatched the lead at 16-15.

With momentum on the Tigresses’ side, UST found themselves ahead at 23-21. Proving why she is considered one of the best in the league, Valdez scored all of Ateneo’s points that did not come from UST errors. She concluded the set with an emphatic back row attack to end it at 28-26 to give Ateneo a 1-0 lead.

With their energy from the first set carrying over to their second set, the Lady Eagles easily took care of UST. Valdez and Jem Ferrer played consistent offense throughout the set and never looked back, winning it easily by 10, 25-15.

Being down two sets to none, UST fought back and played with purpose. They cruised to a quick 8-4 advantage. Later, Caballejo, Carmela Tunay and running spike specialist Maika Ortiz further helped UST build a 16-9 advantage. However, the veteran experience of Angeline Gervacio and the explosiveness of Valdez kept Ateneo within distance. Ateneo eventually tied the set up at 20-all and never looked back as Fille Cainglet finished things off to give Ateneo the victory, 25-22.

With the conclusion of the elimination round, Ferrer emerged as the league’s best setter, averaging 27.5 per game, while Valdez bagged this year’s scoring title, averaging 20.5 points per game.

The Lady Spikers face the Adamson Lady Falcons in their Final Four match-up in the Smart Araneta Coliseum on February 23, Saturday.